Chargers storms past Panthers

Monday

Jan 14, 2013 at 9:00 AM

By Ed Patinoed.patino@hillsdale.netHILLSDALE — After an uncharacteristic week in which it struggled offensively, the Hillsdale College men's basketball team as righted the ship in a big way.For the second straight game, hot shooting propelled the Chargers to a win, this time an 86-59 victory over the Ohio Dominican University Panthers in a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Association game Saturday at Jesse Philips Arena.Three players scored in double figures for Hillsdale (10-4, 6-4 GLIAC), which never trailed in the contest. After shooting at a 60-percent clip in Thursday's victory at Tiffin, the Chargers were even more on fire Saturday, shooting 68.6 percent from the floor."Going into the Christmas break we were playing well, but in the first two games after that set a terrible pace and didn't work hard enough," Hillsdale coach John Tharp said. "We addressed having pride in the program and talked about getting back to the things we're about."The Chargers took control early in the first half with a 14-4 run and never looked back. Baskets by Nick Washburn and Darius Ware broke a 4-4 tie, then consecutive 3-pointers by Brandon Pritzl and Washburn lifted Hillsdale into an 18-8 lead just over six minutes in.Ohio Dominican (3-12, 0-10 GLIAC) answered with a 3-pointer from Morgan Jones, but Tim Dezelski and Washburn answered with baskets before Anthony Manno and Pritzl buried consecutive missiles, making it 35-13.The teams exchanged baskets in the final four minutes of the half, and Hillsdale carried a 41-19 lead into intermission."We were disappointed (last Saturday) against Saginaw Valley, and Thursday we played with and edge," Tharp said. "The guys did a good job looking for each other and creating opportunities."The Chargers pulled further ahead early in the second half with 10 straight points. Dezelski and Cody Smith kicked off the run with inside baskets, then Dezelski added two more baskets in the paint, giving Hillsdale a 51-21 lead.The Panthers answered with a 10-4 run of their own. Jones hit four free throws and a layup by Trent Weaver made it 55-31, but Hillsdale halted their momentum with 12 straight points. Tony Nelson and Dezelski scored inside baskets, then Ware scored a layup and converted a traditional 3-point play, making it 67-31 midway through the half.Three minutes later, Ryan Choiniere threw down a dunk and hit a layup, then Pritzl sank another 3-pointer, increasing the Chargers' lead to 29."We feel our bench is a big reason for our production," Tharp said. "Ryan facilitates our offense and looks for the open player, and guys like Manno, Nelson and Jason Pretzer have been quite good for us the majority of the year."Dezelski finished with a game-high 21 points to lead Hillsdale. Washburn recorded a double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds, while Pritzl had 11 points. Ware finished with nine points.Jones, who entered the game ranked sixth in the league in scoring, was held to 11 points. Jordan Cowgill led Ohio Dominican with 12 points off the bench, while Chad Nelson scored eight points."We did a better job with our 1-2 rotation, and the guys have a belief in our formula of good defense and rebounding," Tharp said. "We have a lot of respect for Jones and his talent, and Nick did a good job protecting the lane. Darius is one of the best on ball defenders in the league."The Chargers are back on the road Thursday when they visit Lake Erie College for another GLIAC contest.NOTES: Tharp earned his 100th victory as Hillsdale's coach Saturday. He posted his 300th career victory Dec. 6 at Northern Michigan...The Chargers are 5-0 against Ohio Dominican since the Panthers joined the GLIAC in the 2010-11 season...Hillsdale improved to 8-1 at home on the season.